I had the opportunity to get out for an overnight trip and I took full advantage of it. Got up early, made the drive to the Uintas, and arrived at the trailhead to a mostly empty trailhead lot. I put on the pack and had a empty trail up to the first lake. There were a couple of people but the least crowded than I have seen in the past. Up over the divide to the next lake then down to the next. From here to my spot wasa off trail, and a fun adventure.
After hoping over deadfalls and navigating off trail, I found myself standing at the lake I was shooting for. I headed in and found the camp I wanted. I got shop set up and then I went fishing. The wind was pretty bad so after about an hour, I moved downstream to a river system and meadow that I was hoping had a surprise. Alas the 30 min excursion produced nothing but I did see a 6" fish in there so I think its a spawner pond. Back up to my lake where the gail force winds were now blowing. I sat in for some lunch then tried another angle on the lake that had a bit less wind, but was still tricky to cast in. I gave this a shot for a bit, but returned to camp empty handed as the winds were just not in my favor.
Evening set it and I gave fishing one more shot as the winds had calmed and it was my last shot before dark. I had a rise next to my fly, but other than that nothing. I did manage to catch a nice shot of the moonrise and the alpeglow on Lofty Peak before retiring to camp for the night.
Night fall came and I put out my D810 for a star trail. On a normal year I would be just sitting by the fire waiting for the camera to finish but there are Stage 1 fire restrictions in place so the whole range you cannot build a fire. So I just got the Luci lamps set up and cracked a cold one and sat and watched the stars shine as my camera did its job. Finally I was ready for bed so I gathred up my camera after shooting for nearly two hours and hit the sleeping bag.
Morning came and I got up and tried fishing again, but only to have the same result. I returned to camp to have coffee and then decided to pack it up and head to the lake above mine to see how the fish activity was on the way out. The hike was pretty with a series of creeks and small falls and a gorgeous meadow on the way up. I arrived at the lake and they were indeed jumping. I fished and got two on but both wiggled off before I got them in. It was a tough fishing trip. I threw the pack on and made my way out. The first human I saw was almost near the trailhead. I peaceful trip for the solstice, tough on the fishing but big on the hiking. Enjoy the images, and YouTube video, like and subscribe if you like! More adventures to come!
The heat is on! With a drastic increase in temperatures the Uintas experienced a huge melt off in two weeks time, so it was time to see how things were out there. I was joined by Dustin and his friend McKell. We made a early departure from the trailhead. The ground in the shadows was muddy as we made our way up the trail. As we passed the lakes the sights were wonderful and it was quiet out there. We eventually crested out on the top of the divide and the views really opened up.
We made our way across the divide enjoying the flowers, the peace and quiet, and some really wonderful reflections of Mt Watson in the Divides. We eventually made our way down to our camp for the night.
We eventually made it to our home for the night. After getting camp built, we put together the fishing gear and got after it. McKell struck first on the spinner rod and landed several huge brookies. Me and Dustin fished our asses off and just not a thing on the fly rods. I don't think I have ever dug so deep into the fly box to only be skunked. Evening set in and we made dinner. Dustin and McKell turned in early and I stayed up to shoot the Milky Way. Then I turned in for some good sleep.
Morning came and I made coffee and breakfast then tried my hand at some more fishing. Dustin and McKell got up and eventually made their way down after coffee and breakfast to try some fishing. I think all three of us by 10:30 AM were over it. We made the decision to move to another lake. We made a quick pack and then moved through the off trail up to the divide. Then we traveresed the Divide to our home for the second night. We arrived at another lake with no people which was awesome. I have stayed here previously but this was Dustin and McKell's first time here. We all set up camp and heaaded straight for the lake to fish. I had one on with my third cast. We fished for hours. I made my way up to the porch for lunch, then back down to fish for the evening.
Evening set in and we were treated to an amazing sunset that seemed to linger forever! Night settled in and Dusitn and McKell turned in early and I stayed up to shoot some astrophotography. I shot my very first Milky Way Pano in the Uintas. I was also able to get a star trail and still get to bed by 12:30 AM! I turned in and fell into a deep sleep.
I awoke at 6:30 and got into my coffee. The morning light was awesome to see and I enjoyed myself for sure. Dustin and McKell rose and they had their coffee as well. We decided to do the rest of the loop that connected our travels in to have a different experience on the way out. Lots of really awesome things to see and the temps were about perfect. Another great adventure in the Uintas. Summer is here and its time to get after it. Make sure you watch the YouTube edit from my channel and subcribe and like! More adventures to come!
I decided to do an overnight into an area I was hoping had melted out. I made a early dearture into the Uintas and met up with my buddy Dustin. We threw on the packs and headed in. The start of this off trail jaunt was not too bad and we just had to navigate around the piles of snow. But the higher we went the more consistent the snow became. There was one post hole that I had to get on my knee to get my leg out. It was big piles of snow and deadfalls all the way up to the lake we were shooting for. After a couple of miles we arrived at the lake.
We had to cross the river to get to where we were thinking about camping. We found some boulders out of the river that we navigated and then searched for a camp. After a bit of hunting we settled on a spot that just had enough open ground to set up shop on. After getting camp settled we put the fishing gear to together and headed out to try our luck. There was a bit more snow on shore than I expected and the ice was covering about half of the lake still, but left enough shore line open to be able to cast. I took some video and some time lapse while I gave it a shot. I did get one hit on the Tenkara, but alas nothing landed. We decided to head back to camp for some lunch.
Back at camp we settled in for something to eat and the sun popped out. We decided to give fishing a go again and fished for hours. The scenery was amazing while out casting, I took another time lapse of the clouds and the light playing on the peaks. Just a beautiful day and a nice way to round out May.
Evening set in and dinner and a fire were on tap. The temps took a dip and that made us stoke the fire, I had Buffalo Mac and Snikers for desert. The alpenglow that painted the peaks at sunset was just amazing to see! Unfortunately the clouds never cleared out so no astrophotography on this trip. We had a nice night by the fire and then turned in for some much needed sleep.
Morning came and we decided with the snow crossings that were in our future to head out early. We took a gamble following the outlet of the lake and that seemed to pay off most of the way out. Only a couple of piles to cross and not even as bad as when we came in. It wa a longer route and we had to cross the river a few times to get out, but over all a beautiful walk in a new area I had not previously visited. A great weekend with good company on a Holiday Weekend that had no crowds. I haven't had one of those for a while. Enjoy the videos and time lapse, and check out my YouTube video from this trip I have posted below. More adventures to come......
